Chicken Quesadillas

I've been working over time and I'm a little tired. Last night I wanted something quick and easy but yummy and filling. Love quesadillas, and so do my kids. Yay! I'll write what I used and then in parenthesis write what you can use.

2 chicken breast
oil
1 can diced tomatoes, drained (or salsa if you have it on hand)
1 t minced garlic
1 t dried oregano
1 t cumin
2 t lemon juice, divided
1 T southwest seasoning (or make it up - paprika, chili powder, onion....)
butter
tortillas
2 C shredded cheese - I used mild cheddar

Cook chicken in oil on stove with half the garlic and 1 t oregano. Remove from heat, dice chicken into small pieces. Place chicken in a bowl. Add tomatoes, garlic, cumin, lemon juice and seasoning to bowl. Mix well. Butter one side of tortillas.
Place tortillas, we'll cook one at a time, on a hot skillet. Add enough mixture to cover half the tortilla. Cover with cheese. Let the tortilla cook for a few seconds before folding the empty side over the stuffed side of the tortilla. Let cook for a few minutes. Flip the tortilla over and cook until cheese is melted. I like my quesadillas crispy. Repeat steps with remaining ingredients.
Serve with sour cream and/or guacamole.

You could add the cheese to your chicken mixture and just plop it all down on the tortilla in one drop.

I'm thinking next time I'll add some cooked/steamed veggies to the chicken mix. Broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, whatever I have on hand.

Apple Cheddar Bacon Soup

Yum Yum Yum Soup. I used gala apples in this soup, but I'm sure you can use any apple that tickles your fancy. Because of it's sweetness I would suggest having it as a first course, not a main meal. My 5 year old, who does not eat soup, ate this soup!

6 strips of bacon (unless you're a bacon lover, then add two strips)
1 small onion, chopped
2 apples, cored, peeled, chopped
1 medium potato, peeled and chopped
3 C chicken stock
1 1/5 C apple juice
2 C shredded cheddar cheese (plus some for extra topping if you like)
2 green onions, sliced
2 slices of wheat bread (or rye)
Dijon mustard

In a pot cook your bacon. Remove bacon and let cool on paper towel. Remove all but 2 T of bacon drippings. (I dipped a paper towel in the pot to make sure I left enough drippings) Cook the onion, apples and potato in bacon drippings over med-high heat about 5 min or until apples are soft. Add chicken stock and apple juice. Cook about 10 more minutes or until potatoes are soft. Turn off heat, stir in all but 2 T of cheese. In batches puree your soup in a blender. Return to pot - I returned it to a smaller pot. Yay, soup is done!

Spread Dijon mustard over bread. Sprinkle with remaining 2 T of cheese. Broil or toast bread in toaster oven until cheese is melted. Cut the bread into cubes - croutons! While the bread is toasting, chop bacon up into pieces.

Serve soup in bowels. Toppings include: croutons, green onions, bacon, shredded cheese.

My son actually dipped the bread into his soup and ate it. Maybe finger length strips of bread would be fun for them.

Turkey Mac & Cheese

I don't know if this recipe has enough cheese! It's delicious and SO creamy....

8 oz noodles of your choice. Jacob chose this, but I also had mini shells on hand.
4 T butter
1/4 C flour
2 C milk
1 bay leaf
Dash of ground Nutmeg
2 1/2 C Cheddar Cheese (white, yellow, whichever), shredded
2 C Gruyere or Gouda Cheese, shredded
12 oz turkey sausage, stuffed with cheese (you can use any type of sausage or even kielbasa, I bought fully cooked meat), sliced
1 C crushed pretzels (Here, I would use bread crumbs instead, maybe not 1 full cup on crumbs. The pretzels came out soft)

Cook noodles according to package directions for al dente. While your water is coming to a boil, shred cheese. In a sauce pan melt butter over Med heat. Add flour and whisk 2 minutes. Add milk, bay leaf, and nutmeg. Whisk occasionally until thickened, about 5-8 minutes. (Drain noodles when they're done.) Add 2 C of cheddar cheese, and 2 C Gouda cheese to milk. Mix well. Add sausage and noodles, mix well. *Add up to 1 C of warm water to make the cheese less viscous. (you can use the water the noodles were cooked in here)* Spread mixture into a greased baking dish, at least 2 qt. Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 C cheddar cheese and top with pretzels or bread crumbs. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes to heat through.

Casserole Surprise

I don't  know if I've posted this before, but I've learned that my kids do not like their dinner plate broken down into meat, veggie, starch, fruit. They pick at it. But.....if I make a casserole, it's gone in 5 minutes. Today's dish is created from a combination of my likes and the kid's likes. You got meat, starch and veggies all in one! Best part - NO ONE knew I put fish in this dish.......

8 oz of noodles - I used mini pinwheels
12 oz velveeta cheese
1/3 c skim milk
1 small frozen pkg of broccoli & cauliflower that you steam in the microwave
S&P to taste
3 tilapia loins
any seasoning you like (see below)
1 C shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 C bread crumbs

Heat oven to 350 deg. Cook noodles according to package directions. While noodles are cooking pan sear (cook) tilapia in butter and any seasoning you like (garlic, dill, sage, basil, etc..) Shred tilapia, set aside. Microwave veggies and dice. Drain noodles, dump back in pot. Return the pot to the stove and add milk, cheese. Mix until melted. Add veggies and fish - mix well. Place mixture in rectangle baking dish.Top with cheese and bread crumbs. Bake for 15 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted.

It's all in the cap

I love stuffed mushrooms. Fill it with almost anything. Here's three ways to enjoy stuffed mushrooms at your next event. To clean a mushroom cap - take a damp paper towel or washcloth (not soaked!). Lightly wipe off dirt. That's it. If you get too much water on them..... well, that's not the mushroom you want. (Thank you Publix magazine)

Spring Veggie

1/2 C bread crumbs

1/2 C shredded carrots

1/4 C sliced green onions

1/3 C grated Parmesan cheese

1/3 C sour cream

Combine all ingredients. Spoon into about 24 large caps. Place them on a baking dish. Lightly drizzle with olive oil. Bake at 425 for about 18 minutes or until golden brown.

Bacon Cheddar

1/2 bread crumbs

4 slices cooked, crumbled bacon

3/4 C shredded cheddar cheese

1/3 C sour cream

2 minced garlic cloved (2 t)

Combine all ingredients. Spoon into about 24 large caps. Also bake at 425 for about 18 minutes or until lightly brown and heated through.

Cheese Herb

1/4 C pesto (buy it if you don't want to make it)

1/4 C bread crumbs

1/4 C shredded Parmesan cheese

1/4 C toasted pine nuts

Brie slices, extra pesto, extra pine nuts

Combine all ingredients. Spoon into about 24 large caps. Top each cap with a thin slice of Brie, a small dab of pesto, and 2-3 pine nuts. Bake this one at 425 for about 9 minutes or until cheese is melted and heated through.

Chicken and Sausage White Chili

1 med onion, coarsely chopped

1-2 poblano peppers, seeded and coarsely chopped

1 t minced garlic

1 T oil

3 chicken sausage links (any flavor) casings removed and chopped

1 lb ground turkey

2 cans navy beans, drained

2 C chicken broth

1 t ground cumin

1 t chili powder

1/2 t dried oregano

1/4 t pepper

1 C milk

1 C shredded cheddar cheese

In a saucepan brown turkey and chicken. Set aside. Preheat a stockpot to med-high with oil. Add onion, poblano peppers, and garlic. Saute for 3 minutes or until soft. Add meat. Stir in cumin, chili powder, pepper and oregano, mix well. Add chicken broth and beans. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. Add milk, cook 2-3 minutes to blend flavors.

Serve into bowls and top with cheese.

Skillet Chili

Last night I had two hungry little boys and ground beef in the fridge. I didn't want to make the same old thing and wanted to feed my kids - Fast! Came across this recipe and tweaked it a little. In 30 minutes I had dinner and the kids scarfed it down! As always, add flavors to taste, sub meat for whatever you have on hand and noodles too!

1 lb ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tsp chopped garlic

1 - 15 oz can tomato sauce

1 - 15 oz can diced tomatoes

1 - 15 oz can kidney beans, drained

1/2 C salsa

2 tsp chili powder

2 tsp paprika

1 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 C macaroni noodles

1/2 C shredded cheddar cheese

Brown meat, onions, and garlic in a deep sided pan (that has a lid). Drain fat. Add all other ingredients, except cheddar cheese. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer 20 minutes, or until noodles are cooked. Sprinkle cheese on top, remove from heat and replace lid until cheese melts - about 2 minutes. Serve.

You could add veggies to this dish if you want to slide in some extra nutrients for your kids. Zucchini, beats, eggplant, whatever.

Turkey and Sausage Chili

We had this inside Publix one afternoon, Scott and I. He ate the whole thing and asked the sweet lady for more!

2 C cooked turkey breast, coarsely chopped

12 oz (3 links) Italian chicken sausage

2 small onions, coarsely chopped

2 poblano peppers, coarsely chopped (it's not spicy, but you can use 1 if you like)

1 C shredded cheddar cheese

2 cans nacy beans, drained

2 C chicken broth

1 t cumin

1 C whole milk

1 t canola oil

1 t chili powder

1/2 t dried oregano

1/4 t pepper

Prep: Chop turney, onions, pepper (toss seeds)

Preheat large pot on medium-high with oil. Add peppers and onions. Cook 2-3 minutes until tender.

Reduce heat to medium. Remove casing from sausage and add to pan. Cook 5-6 minutes or until meat is browned, stirring frequently crumbling meat.

Stir in cumin, chili powder, oregano, pepper, beans and broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook for 10-12 minutes. Stir in turkey and milk, cook 2-3 minutes.

Serve in bowls, top with cheese.

Roast Pork Chops with Cheddar and Bacon Grits.....Paula Deen

Thank you Paula Deen!!! Meat, cheddar, and bacon. Need I say more. I have not made this yet, but I will soon and I will comment when I do.

5 C milk

1 C quick cooking grits

1 t salt, divided

1/2 t black pepper, divided

1/4 C butter

1/4 C grated cheddar cheese

4 Slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

4 Large pork chops

2 T Vegetable Oil

In a medium saucepan, bring the milk to a boil over med-high heat. Add the grits, 1/2 t salt, 1/4 t pepper and the butter. Cook and stir frequently until the grits are soft. Stir in cheese and bacon. Set aside and keep warm.

Sprinkle the pork chops with the remaining salt and pepper, or to taste. In a large skillet, heat the oil over med-high heat. Add the pork chops and cook for 10 minutes, turning occasionally.

Spoon some grits onto each serving plate and arrange pork chop on top.